Follow The Wind
by Unstable Firestarter
Summary: When Mira transfers to Balamb Garden, she becomes attracted to one Seifer Almasy and also caught in the middle when Adel wages war on Garden. The two are thrown to opposite sides, forced to fight-one for his dream, the other for the world. Seifer/OC.
1. New Arrival

**A/N:** Well, this story has undergone a LOT of editing. This was previously _Love is Blind_, but when I skimmed it recently, last week, the cliche...ness of it burned my eyes, so I took it down and re-edited the WHOLE thing. Names of OCs, sentence structure, some events, dialogue, etc, have all been reworked. It's still not as good as if I'd wrote it from scratch today, but it's a lot better. All right, all my rambling aside now, ehehe, here's the story. Reviews are welcome, but I'd appreciate no flames-if you don't like it, don't read it, simple as that.~

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**Chapter One – "**_**New Arrival"**_

The sun shone down on the Garden that resided on the island of Balamb. But this day was different; Garden had a new student, transferred from Tribia Garden; Mira Carlton. The seventeen year old had finished her training at Tribia Garden and had arrived at Balamb a day before the Field Exam. This Exam was different then others however; if you passed, you became a SeeD.

The raven-tressed girl once again looked down at the cardkey in her hand, upon which her dormitory number was printed. Before she could find the right room, she had to find the _dorms_; Balamb Garden was huge, compared to Tribia. Her green eyes lit up as she spotted the directory, and she slung her duffle bag over her shoulder as she hurried over to the directory. Quickly finding out where the dorms were, she started in that direction. It was a long walk, since she had to go around the elevator and fountains in the middle, which meant she had plenty of time to look around.

Upon reaching the dorms, she found that they went over three levels, and so glanced at the card-key in her hand; room 319. One of the last rooms, just her luck. When she finally reached the right dorm room, she used her cardkey to let herself in. Rules had been explained to her when she arrived, and they had given her her cardkey, which they said only opened her part of the dorm. She wondered who her room mate was, then, since she must have one. She set her duffle bag down in her part of the dorm and read the note that was posted on the inside of the door; along with some further rules, it said that her room mate was a Seifer Almasy, whoever that was.

Walking into the small kitchen, she saw a schedule tacked on a message board, and if it was right, she was going to be late for the written exam. She had been told that she had an exam today, of course, but it being her first day and all, she had completely forgotten.

She hurried off, wondering if she would ever get a moment to herself. The directory she had looked at earlier also covered the second floor, which held the classrooms. It wasn't hard getting there; just time consuming, as the elevator doors were facing in the opposite direction as the entrance for the dorms. When she finally got to the class room, she found out that she was, thankfully, just on time. She entered the class room and the Instructor, a kind but stern looking young woman, looked up. With a small smile and a nod, the Instructor stood and got the class's attention.

"I'd like to introduce you all to Balamb Garden's newest student; Mira Carlton," The Instructor said.

Mira felt dumb just standing there, and was grateful when the Instructor, who introduced herself as Quistis, assigned her to an empty desk. She could tell that a few of the students were still watching her, and she hated that; it was like being a bug in a glass jar. But she didn't have much time to ponder that, because the written exam was being handed out. She sighed as she stared down at the first question; she liked action better.

'_Describe what a GF is and where you can find one…'_

------

After the exam was over and everyone started to leave, Quistis called out; "Would Seifer Almasy and Mira Carlton please stay behind after they hand in their exams."

Mira looked up, startled to hear her own name. Wait a minute, Seifer Almasy…? Wasn't he her room mate? Curious to find out, Mira hopped up from her desk with her paper in hand. She walked up the aisle with most of the rest of the class and handed in her exam, though after a moment noticed that Quistis's gaze was on a point above and behind her.

She turned to find herself facing a young man a _lot_ taller than her, whom she had to look up to. He wore black boots with matching black pants, a blue and gray vest, gloves, and a long gray trenchcoat with pointed red crosses on the sleeves. A thick-linked silver necklace glinted around his neck, she noticed, as her gaze traveled up. He had a handsome face; beautiful, taunting blue eyes that seemed somewhat bored and annoyed at the moment, blonde hair that was swept back, and a peculiar, but not ugly, scar that ran across the bridge of his nose.

She started to blush when she realized that she was standing directly in his way. "Sorry," she mumbled shyly, almost tripping over herself in her haste to sidestep.

He didn't reply, just stepped forward to hand in his exam as well. Afterwards though, he turned his gaze to her, studying her from head-to-toe like she'd just done to him, and she felt her face flush again. She was embarrassing herself; why was she reacting this way? It wasn't just the way he was staring at her, there was something else…

"Well," Quistis said, neatly stacking the exam papers on her desk, "I called the both of you for two reasons. Since you are both in dorm 319, I thought I'd introduce the two of you. Seifer, Mira." She gestured to each of them, and Mira glanced over at him.

"Now, for the second, more important reason," Quistis said, "The field exam is tomorrow, and I've assigned the two of you as training partners. You both need to be ready for tomorrow."

"Sure, stick _me_ with the rookie," Seifer said, looking over at Mira with a critical eye, "Well; at least she's more to look at than Leonhart."

She felt her face flushing even more and blinked in surprise as she looked down at the floor again.

Quistis ignored Seifer's comment and said, "Is this satisfactory with the both of you?"

"Sure," Seifer said without any enthusiasm what-so-ever.

"Yeah," Mira said in a slightly happier tone, "Fine with me."

"Good," Quistis said, nodding, "You can go now. Oh, and Seifer; no repeats of the other morning, please," she waved her hand towards the door and shifted her gaze to the stack of exams on her desk.

Seifer walked out the door and Mira followed, quiet and unsure for the moment, but as they walked down the hallway, she began to go on and on about them training together, obviously looking forward to it unlike her silent companion. Though before they could do any training that day, Mira would have to get her weapon of choice, which was in her dorm-her Gunblade.

She met Seifer in one of the meadows outside of Garden, and by then, the sun was beginning to dip below the horizon. Wild flowers dotted the meadow and for now, the only sound that could be heard was the chirping of birds.

"What took you?" Seifer asked. He didn't say anything about it, but he eyed her Gunblade, secretly somewhat pleased because she was the first woman he'd seen to choose a Gunblade.

"It's a long walk to the dorms and out here, not to mention doing it without getting lost," Mira replied, "This is my first day here you know."

Her mid-length black hair shone in the setting sun; she was excited, and yet nervous. Nervous about what though, she wasn't sure. She brought her Gunblade forward, turning away from the setting sun so she wouldn't be blinded.

"So…this is just a test of my skills?" she asked.

"If you have any," Seifer said.

She focused her gaze on a wild flower and pretended she hadn't heard him.

Silence followed, and she found it quite uncomfortable.

"Are we going to just stand around and talk?" he said impatiently.

"I wasn't the one who started the chit-chat," Mira replied, taking up a fighter's stance.

"Well?" she said, side-stepping lightly on the balls of her feet.

"Let's see your 'skills'," he said in a mocking tone.

Mira started forward with a cautious swing, and then darted back out of reach. Slowly, however, her moves became bolder, quicker, as she gained confidence about the situation. She spun around and brought her Gunblade down. Seifer blocked and drove her back, causing her to stumble and almost fall.

"Is that all you've got?" he said.

She didn't reply, but swung her Gunblade around hard and fast. Seifer brought his Gunblade up and there was a loud resounding clang as the blades collided, the force vibrating her Gunblade and jarring her arms. But it was just beginning… Seifer was a better fighter then her, as she soon found out. Suddenly, he shot a jet of Fire magic at Mira, who barely managed to dodge.

"Hey," she protested, "No fair, we're only supposed to be training!"

"You'll never learn if you haven't been in a serious situation," Seifer said, "Have you ever been in a life or death situation?"

She didn't answer right away. "No, never," she said at last, shaking her head.

"Then you wouldn't be prepared for the exam tomorrow," he said.

Mira looked up, slightly puzzled.

"Come on; show me what you've got," he said.

She didn't get a chance to reply, because the next moment, she found herself blocking blows and striking out with her own Gunblade.

"You should treat every situation as if it were life or death," Seifer said, blocking one of her blows.

The setting sun threw long shadows across the land now.

"I already know when I can use that advice," Mira said, swinging her Gunblade around in an arc, "Right now, correct? Always be prepared."

"You learn fast," he said.

She almost smiled, but her attention was focused on the fight. _'Never take your eyes off of a battle until it is complete,'_ some one at her old Garden had told her, but she couldn't remember who. She had speed and accuracy behind her moves, but Seifer had strength, and he could use that against her-which he did.

Mira was breathing hard and her heart was pounding. She spun around in a move to bring her Gunblade down, when a jet of fire hit the blade with enough force to knock it out of her hand.

She half turned. "Hey!" she protested softly, a little unsure.

She moved quickly to retrieve her Gunblade, but another jet of fire hit the ground next to her hand. A purposeful miss; a warning. She turned to Seifer; what was he doing? She was about to ask that when he swung his Gunblade at her. With a small gasp, Mira dove out of the way and rolled to her feet. She was a bit surprised, but still ready for a fight.

"I've also been trained in hand-to-hand combat," she said, throwing a punch, "Just thought I'd let you know."

She had to get her Gunblade back. She did a back-walk-over and found herself standing right next to her 'blade. She glanced from Seifer to her weapon. Deciding quick, Mira dove for her Gunblade. She came up on one knee, 'blade raised in front of her. She was ready for an attack from the front, but not the one that came from the side. The flat of his Gunblade caught Mira in the side of her head, not hard enough to do any real damage, just knock her down and disorient her. She fell sideways, one arm out to catch herself. Her head swam and there was a ringing in her ears.

Her heart was pounding and her head throbbed as, slowly, with Gunblade in hand, she stood. She gripped her 'blade a little tighter as she stumbled slightly. She turned to face Seifer and frowned.

"Alright, now _that_ was a little unfair," she said.

By now, her head, though still throbbing a little, had cleared and she was ready for action again. Mira side-stepped to avoid an attack and swung her Gunblade around to bring it down hard. Only then did she realize her mistake; Seifer had tricked her, caused her to use her own momentum and speed against her. She stumbled, regained her balance, and prepared to spin when he came up behind her. A flash of movement made her freeze as Seifer's Hyperion came to a quivering halt inches from her throat. She was trapped; she had lost, though this was only 'training'. Her heart was thundering and she was breathing hard.

"You can fight pretty well, but if this wasn' just training, you'd be dead," he said.

Mira closed her eyes and resisted the urge to dart away, to get away, her grip on her own Gunblade tightening. She opened her eyes, "I get your point," she said finally.

"Good," Seifer said, lowering his Gunblade and stepping away, "End of lesson," he began walking back toward Garden.

For a while after that, Mira stood there, her eyes closed, trembling slightly. Inside, her emotions tumbled together. A bit of fear-fear of what, Seifer? Anger, just slightly, and another emotion she couldn't pin point that made her heart race. When she opened her eyes, the sun had set. Garden would be locking up soon and if she didn't hurry back, she'd be in trouble her very first day. A warm breeze played with Mira's hair as she walked toward Garden.


	2. Exams

**Chapter Two – "**_**Exams"**_

When Mira woke up the next morning, the sun was barely up; today was the field exam-if she passed the written exam, which she probably did. She stared up at the dark ceiling of her dorm; everything was quiet, but it was the classic 'a little too quiet'. She was too excited to go back to sleep, so she got up, put on her robe, and stepped out onto her little balcony. The warm breeze blew gently through her hair as she smiled and leaned forward on the rail as a few seagulls flew by.

Unexpectedly, pain shot through her head, causing her to gasp, and grip the rail with one hand as she clutched her head with the other. The pain throbbed and she stumbled. It was only on one side of her head, she realized; where Seifer had hit her with his Gunblade the day before. The pain faded to a gently pulsating white light, but the warm breeze felt cold on her skin, and her eyes went blank. Her heart pounded in her chest but her breathing was slower then normal. She tried to shout out, "leave me alone!" but the words died in her throat.

It was then that she fainted. Out cold, for who knows how long, but when she finally did awaken, there was a message over the intercom;

"…_I repeat again, will_-" the voice listed a group of names that she didn't recognize, and couldn't get to stick in her head at this moment, "-_Seifer Almasy and Mira Carlton meet at the front gate."_

"Oh no!" she gasped, realizing with a start, but completely having forgotten why she fainted, that today was the field exam.

She couldn't be late! She took a shower, brushed her teeth, combed her hair and put on her student uniform in record time, before dashing out of her dorm and bolting down the hall. She reached the front gate just as the last student arrived.

"Good," Quistis said with a smile, "Now that we're all assembled, I have a few things to say before I announce the squads. Do you all have at least one GF; a GF is required for the field exam?" She looked at Mira first.

"I do," the girl replied, nodding.

"Anyone who does not have a GF is disqualified from the field exam," Quistis said, "Due to safety issues."

At her words, three students trudged away reluctantly.

"All right, the Squads are-" she rattled off a bunch of student and squad names, "-And finally, Squad D; Seifer Almasy, Zell Dincht, and Mira Carlton."

Mira glanced over at Seifer; so, they were going to be on the same squad.

She was silent on the way to the town of Balamb, her mind filled with thoughts of the upcoming exam.

When they got to the dock, a man waved them towards a vessel. "Come on; you guys are the last," he said.

As they headed towards their destination, Mira was still silent, which was odd, considering that she was normally quite talkative. Apparently Seifer noticed this too.

"What's wrong Chatter-box," he said, "Scared?"

She looked up, "A bit," she said.

Silence followed her words.

"What's wrong Seifer, run out of dumb remarks?" she said, not looking up.

Zell smiled to himself; he wasn't really fond of Seifer.

Suddenly, the vessel rocked, startling Mira and causing her to jump.

As Seifer laughed, Quistis poked her head around the corner and said, "We're there."

Mira followed Zell and Seifer and discovered that they had landed on a beach. Their objective had been explained on the way; secure the hotel and help any wounded civilians. As they headed up the beach towards the actual town of Dollet, her heart was pounding. She looked around cautiously, being both nervous and excited. Her GF was anxious too, she could feel it; it was looking forward to a fight.

"My GF is just waiting for a fight," Mira said aloud.

"Yeah," Seifer said with a smirk, "I'd like to see what kind of GF you have."

An enemy soldier ran down the street towards them, obviously not having the element of surprise, but also obviously thinking he could take the three of them on his own with no advantages.

"I've got this guy," Mira said, lunging into a sharp kick that caught the soldier square in the head and knocked him out cold. A simple price for being arrogant.

With the soldier out of the way, she scanned the road ahead again, her Gunblade raised. "Come on, we're almost at the hotel," she said, nodding to the other two.

"Who appointed _you_ leader?" Seifer grumbled.

She held back a sigh, not replying. Instead, she headed down the devastated street towards where the hotel should be, according to the map. Two enemy soldiers blocked their path this time, jumping out from behind large crates that were stacked near a deserted flower shop, and now she summoned her GF.

"Moneros, attack!" she whispered, opening her eyes.

A large silver and black steed appeared before them, a long deadly sharp horn gleaming on its forehead, and defeated the soldiers with said horn. The being was black, with starburst designs on its coat, and silver hooves, mane, tail, and horn. With the soldiers defeated, Moneros vanished in a silver and black rainbow, leaving only Zell shocked it seemed.

With that final interruption, they reached the hotel, spreading out to ensure that the structure was clear. Mira checked the third floor, while Zell took the second, and Seifer, of course, took the first. Twenty minutes later, the three of them were assembled in the first floor lobby; now that their objective was complete, they were on stand-by until they received further orders.

"Stand by, how boring," Seifer said.

Mira sighed and got up from her spot by one of the windows. However, a student burst through the door at that moment, interrupting whatever she'd been about to say.

"…Monster…at Town Square…" he said breathlessly.

"Monster?" Seifer was immediately alert, as if he were just looking for a fight, and she was pretty sure that he was.

"Town Square it is, who's coming with me?" he said, turning to Zell and Mira.

"But-you can't leave the hotel! That'd be defying orders!" she exclaimed.

Seifer stared at her. "I'm going. What, you gonna stop me?" he said.

Mira opened her mouth to reply but Zell said to her, "Just let him go; he wants to defy orders or whatever? That's his problem."

She started to protest again but thought twice, and closed her mouth.

In a minute, Seifer was out the door and gone.

"He's going to get in trouble," Mira sighed, pacing in front of one of the windows.

"So? Seifer's always getting in trouble," Zell said.

She stopped pacing. "Really?" she said with a frown.

"Yeah, don't 'cha know? Oh, that's right; you're new," he said.

"Yep, that's me, the new girl," she sighed.

For a while, there was silence, broken only by the faint shouts and gunfire from outside. However, it was just then that a brunette girl in a Garden student uniform walked in, causing Mira to jump in surprise.

"Are you guys Squad D?" the girl asked.

Mira nodded, "Who are you?" she asked.

"I'm Selphie, from Squad A," the girl replied, "I have a message for the Squad leader, is he here?"

"He's not available at the moment," Mira sighed.

"Oh, well, the message is important, I s'pose I could tell you guys," Selphie said, "The message is a withdraw order, '_all members of Garden are to be on shore in thirty minutes or be left behind'_."

Mira's eyes widened slightly, "A withdraw order, why?" she asked.

Selphie shook her head, "I'm just the messenger; don't ask me."

"Well, we'd better go; we don't want to be left behind," Mira said, nodding towards Zell and heading for the door.

As they exited the hotel, Mira suddenly remembered Seifer, but…Town Square was in the opposite direction of the shore.

"You guys go on ahead, I'm going to get Seifer," Mira told Zell and Selphie.

"But-" Selphie started to protest, but Mira was already running towards Town Square.

When Mira reached the Town Square, she immediately noticed the monster-it was hard not to after all; the thing was huge. It resembled some sort of flying creature, with an oddly shaped funnel like head almost. It flapped its wings and the gale almost knocked her over. With a cry, she stumbled back a few feet, but with Gunblade in hand, she quickly got to her feet; where was Seifer? Then she heard his voice;

"Come on you overgrown fly! Is that all you got?"

The monster shrieked in response, obviously not happy with being taunted, if it could even understand the words at all.

The wind caused by its wings whistled in Mira's ears as she rushed towards the sound of his voice. "Seifer?" she called out.

She rounded the last bend around the monster when its wings flared out and hit her. Mira cried out as she crashed through a storefront window, landing hard and lying still for a minute, the air crushed from her lungs. Slowly, carefully, she got to her feet, glass shards biting into her hand before she brushed them away. She looked around for her Gunblade and discovered that it hadn't been thrown through the window with her. She hopped though the frame and saw her 'blade on the ground a few feet away. Ducking the monster's wings, she darted forward and snatched up her Gunblade, rolling to her feet as her gaze swept over to Seifer.

"We have to get out of here," she called, "NOW!"

Seifer opened his mouth to protest, but Mira cut him off.

"Unless you want to be left behind, we have to get out of here," she repeated, ducking one of the monster's wings.

Seifer didn't look happy at all about it, but he started after her anyway. The two of them raced side-by-side towards the shore, the flying monster right behind them, tearing up the town and streets with its wings and wind. They reached the beach and Mira could see that the vessel headed for home was still waiting for them. She slipped in the sand and almost fell, but Seifer hauled her to her feet.

They made it onto the vessel just as the doors closed behind them. While the ship pulled away from shore, she collapsed in one of the chairs, breathing hard as her heart pounded. However, that didn't stop Zell from telling her that what she had done was stupid. She didn't care though; she couldn't have left Seifer behind. There was something about him, something that drew her to him, some emotion…did she care about him? Shaking her head in puzzlement, she closed her eyes.

"Mira," Zell started.

She opened her eyes, "Star," she said.

"Star?" Zell repeated.

"Oh, sorry," she apologized, her face flushing slightly, "It was my mother's name."

"Your mother, huh? You must be really close to-" he started again.

"I never knew my mother," Mira said quietly, lowering her gaze to the floor, "She died when I was real young."

Zell looked startled, "Oh, I'm sorry," he said, "But…if you never knew her, why randomly with her name?"

Mira rolled her eyes and sighed, as if to say 'what am I going to do with you?' but what she _did_ say was, "I never knew her, but I've heard a lot about her; she was a famous Witch," she paused, looking down again, "She died trying to stop Sorceress Adel," she finished softly.

For a moment, no one said anything; it took that long for what she said to sink in. Everyone knew who Sorceress Adel was; a very powerful, very mean magic-user determined to take over the world. And at one point, another very powerful magic-user had seriously wounded Adel, causing her to go into hiding until the day her powers fully returned.

"Your original question was?" she asked politely.

Zell shook his head, "I forgot," he said apologetically.

"So what? Her mother tried to kill Sorceress Adel but got herself blown up instead," Seifer sneered.

Mira turned to face him. Her eyes were ablaze, but she didn't say anything to him, taking a deep breath to calm herself. Just then, the vessel jerked to a stop, causing her to jump in surprise. So, they were home again…that hadn't seemed to take very long at all. But it was good to be back in Balamb, to be able to have her feet on solid ground with no one trying to kill her, and to be able to rest.


	3. The Start of Chaos

**Chapter Three – "_The Start of Chaos_"**

Back in Garden finally, Mira nervously waited in the second floor hallway with the others who took the exam, tucking her hair behind her ears to keep it from tickling her face. They were waiting for the results; those who had passed would be called up to see the Headmaster. She paced back and forth, chewing on her thumb as she watched the lines on the floor.

A voice rang out over the intercom system; "_Please step forward when your name is called."_

There was a pause, in which her heart skipped a beat as she stopped pacing and chewing, her heart pounding in her ears.

"_Selphie Tilmitt _

_Squall Leonhart_

_Zell Dincht and_

_Mira Carlton."_

She felt immediately relieved; she had passed, she was a SeeD.

She and the others who had passed crowded onto the elevator to see the Headmaster, who gave a speech congratulating them on their achievement, and told them that all students were invited to the party that evening which was to celebrate those becoming SeeDs. With a light heart and a wide smile, Mira headed back to her dorm for a shower before the party. Afterwards, she discovered her new SeeD uniform neatly folded on her bed, and so dried her hair and eagerly got changed.

When evening came around, she joined the other students headed for the party, in awe of the size and beauty of the ballroom. Of course, she was too shy to ask anyone to dance, so she mostly stood off by herself and listened to the pleasant ballroom music. But her eyes kept wandering back to Seifer, who was also by himself; though she guessed it was for a different reason then hers; he was upset because he hadn't become a SeeD. Hadn't she warned him? She had, but he didn't want to listen. Just because he was a year older then most of the students, he thought he knew more or was better then them. Mira looked away, her gaze resting on the night sky that she could see clearly through the glass dome over the ballroom. A shooting star arced across the sky, and she closed her eyes.

_Make a wish._

A wish? What could she wish for, what could she want? _Revenge on Sorceress Adel._

Her eyes were still closed when she wished, so she didn't see the shooting star explode like a firework and the other stars glitter in unison. When she opened her eyes, all she saw was a normal sky. She looked over at Seifer and her heart skipped a beat; he was watching her. Why did she feel this way around him?

She quickly looked away, blushing. She looked up again and her eyes widened slightly in surprise because Seifer was walking towards her. As they started talking, Mira realized that there was something different about the way Seifer talked to her; nicer, or something, like he'd just been acting tough and had dropped the act. She eased herself into the conversation as she felt her tense muscles relax. Odd, but she felt she could talk freely around him. This was the most they had ever said to each other, in a pleasant conversation, and it was then that she got to like Seifer; not only was he cool and good looking, but he was easy to talk to…once you got to know him.

---------

"_Mira Carlton, Squall Leonhart and Zell Dincht, report to the front gate ASAP!"_

Mira jerked awake; hmmm? She opened her eyes and sighed. What did they want now?

With a groan, she threw back the covers and got up, dressing quickly and heading for the front gate, yawning along the way. She found Zell, Squall, the Headmaster and a dark-haired girl she didn't know, waiting.

"Ah, now that our last SeeD is here, we can begin," Headmaster Cid said, "This is Rinoa, she is a SeeD from Tribia Garden; she will assist you on your mission."

"What is our mission, Headmaster?" Mira asked politely.

"Your mission, SeeDs of Balamb Garden, is to assassinate Sorceress Adel," Cid said.

She froze, her heart skipped a beat; Sorceress Adel?

Cid didn't seem to notice her surprise as he continued; the SeeDs would travel to Deling City, where the Sorceress was said to be making an appearance after all these years. They would take a train from the town of Balamb, through an underwater tunnel, to Deling City, and then, if everything went according to plan, the Sorceress would be dead by sunrise.

The Headmaster finished explaining the mission in great detail, and then the four SeeDs headed out. Everyone was silent on the trip to the town of Balamb. Once there, they bought tickets and boarded the train. While they pulled of town, Rinoa and Squall began to discuss the mission, and Zell had lost himself in a magazine, which left Mira alone and bored. She entered the SeeD's special compartment and sat down; too bad Seifer couldn't have come, he would have loved to take on Sorceress Adel, but he hadn't been made a SeeD.

Mira suddenly felt tired; she couldn't keep her eyes open. She yawned as she struggled to stay awake, but slumped over on the couch and fell asleep almost instantly. She must have slept through the entire trip, because when she awoke, the train was pulling into Deling Station. She sat up and joined the others in the main compartment, and the four of them exited the train, heading for their temporary base-the home of a resistance member. By resistance, of course, that was the group here who opposed Sorceress Adel. There, they discussed strategies. It was all pretty boring to Mira; she wanted action, wanted her revenge on Adel.

Looked like she was going to get her wish.

As evening came around, they once more went over their positions; when the clock struck eight, Adel was going to be in a parade to celebrate the return of her powers, supposedly a good thing, and most of Deling was happy about this because Adel had them brainwashed. Anyway, her float would be passing under an arch simply called the _Silver Arch_. When her float was directly beneath said Arch, Zell was going to flip a switch that closed the wrought-iron gates at either end of the Arch. Then Squall and Rinoa would be responsible for taking care of Adel. Mira's part in all this? Back up, plain and boring. Half the times on missions, back up wasn't even needed. So she would probably do nothing…how interesting.

Night fell at last, and at seven forty-five, everyone set out for their positions. Mira's was by the Silver Arch, in case Squall and Rinoa needed help. She was the last to head for her post, as she took her time somewhat, feeling a bit left out at just being 'back up', it was also seven fifty and a large crowd had gathered, slowing her down. However, she thought she heard some one calling her name, and so turned to see Quistis running up to her, out of breath.

"Mira! I'm so glad I caught you, there's something I have to tell you," Quistis said.

"What is it?" Mira asked, slightly alarmed.

"Seifer. When he heard that you four had been sent out to kill Sorceress Adel, he broke out of Garden," Quistis paused, "He kept saying something about not letting you ruin his dream."

Mira's heart skipped a beat; this sounded serious.

"I followed him here to Deling," Quistis said, "And now I'm afraid he's joined Adel."

"You think…Seifer's with the Sorceress?" Mira asked almost inaudibly, her eyes widening in disbelief.

Quistis nodded.

"This isn't good, the others have no idea; they'll just be expecting Adel," Mira stated lamely, blinking.

"I know, we have to hurry; it's almost eight," Quistis said, "We have to warn them."

"As a SeeD, I'll do my best!" Mira said, turning and dashing through the crowd.

She couldn't believe it; Seifer with Adel? If she hadn't just heard it from Quistis, she _wouldn't_ have believed it.

Through the crowd, she could see Adel's float; it was almost under the Silver Arch. She inhaled sharply, it was true; on the float, standing beside Sorceress Adel, was Seifer. The float was under the Arch now as she ran, the clock was striking eight, and the gates closed, trapping the Sorceress. But the others didn't know Seifer was there too, she had to warn them.

The crowd was blocking her way; she wasn't going to make it.

She saw Squall and Rinoa leap onto the float, and suddenly, people shoved her aside, knocking her off her feet. Her shout of surprise was lost in the crowd, but as she tried not to get trampled, she heard the clash of metal; she was too late. Frustrated, she climbed to her feet and shoved people out of her way. She darted between the metal bars of the gate and climbed up onto the float to see Seifer and Squall fighting, to see-a brilliant flash of light and she was blasted off her feet. She slammed into the side wall of the Arch before she had a chance to utter a sound, her Gunblade slipping from her hand as her world went dark.


	4. Imprisoned

**Chapter Four – "**_**Imprisoned**_**"**

When Mira opened her eyes, she didn't know what had happened, where she was, or how mush time had passed. She heard a clang and jerked fully awake, sitting up and brushing a strand of black hair out of her face; she was in a room, a cell of some kind. As she looked around, she discovered that the cell was circular, and there was metal grating in the center. A prison cell…? Well…they _had_ tried to kill the Sorceress after all…

The door to her left opened, causing her to jump, and three guards entered.

She got to her feet, eyeing them warily.

"Listen up punk-" one of the guards started.

"My name is Mira," she said angrily, cutting the guard off.

"Whatever brat," the guard continued, "You're in the Sorceress's own personal prison and you're never gettin' out!"

"Says who, _you_? Ohhh, Scary," she shot back, rolling her eyes.

In response, one of the guards hit her with his baton, causing her to wince. She was angry enough that she wanted to hit him back, but she didn't…for now.

"Shut up!" the guard with the baton snapped.

Mira merely glared at him this time.

"Seifer was right when he said you were a tough one," the first guard laughed.

She froze; _Seifer said_? So, she realized with a sinking feeling, he really _had_ sided with the Sorceress…

"You'll learn where you stand here, punk," said the guard with the baton, raising his weapon.

Alright, she'd had enough of this shit.

With a shout, she lunged, weaponless, at the guard with the baton. Because he was surprised, she managed to knock him down, his head hitting the steel floor hard enough to knock him out. Mira took his weapon and jumped to her feet as the silent guard started for her, but she flipped him over her head and rendered him unconscious as well. The last guard, the mean one, didn't seem surprised, just angry. She circled around him so that her back was to the still open door. She didn't have her Gunblade, which, in a situation like this, wasn't good. But still; she was going to get out of her cell, at least.

"This is too easy," she said, "You'd think they'd have better security in this place."

"You're right; it _is_ too easy," a familiar voice behind her said.

Jumping in surprise, she spun, dropping the baton by accident; _Seifer_. Taking advantage of her stunned reaction, the remaining guard hit her in the head with his baton, and she tumbled into Seifer's arms, unconscious.

The next time she opened her eyes, she found herself still in her cell, but this time her hands and feet were shackled; just her luck. Why couldn't she have been more cautious? Her plan of escape was hopeless now, dammit. She was about to give up when she remembered her Guardian Force.

Her eyes lit up, and she called softly, "Moneros, I summon you."

In a flash of black light, the horned creature appeared.

"Hello, my friend, do you think you could cut these chains?" Mira said, speaking quietly.

Moneros bobbed its head and sliced neatly through the chains with its silver horn.

Free to move now, she sat up and grinned, "Thank you. Could you bust down that door?" she asked, patting her GF.

Moneros backed up to the door and struck out with its hind hooves.

The door flew off its hinges, knocking over two guards in the process. After she thanked her GF, the being faded from sight. She cautiously poked her head out and looked around, her gaze landing on the floor where she saw her Gunblade. One of the guards must have been carrying it. She picked up her 'blade, eyes darting around; she didn't see any more guards on this level. She had to find the others and get out of there, like, yesterday.

Mira hurried along, peeping in the windows of cells as she went. When she reached the end of her level, she faced a tough decision; up or down? She chose up and prayed she was right. By going up, she found that she had been on level seven, but she didn't find the others on the eighth level, and so moved on to the ninth. When she was nearly at the end of that level, she was ready to turn around and head back down, when she heard a familiar voice from inside the next cell. Her heart skipped a beat; had she found the others? She almost ran to the next cell, looking in the window and sighed in relief; she had found them.

"Looks like you need some rescuing!" Mira joked.

They looked up in surprise as she opened the door.

Quistis jumped to her feet, "Mira! You're alright!" she cried.

"Yeah, of course. You didn't think I was dead, did you?" Mira said in a mock offended tone.

"When we saw that you weren't with us, we didn't know what to think," Quistis said.

"Sorry I couldn't come sooner, I was delayed," Mira said.

"Now that we're a group again, we can get out of here," Zell said.

"Right, but how? I didn't see any _Exit_ signs on my way up," Mira questioned with a frown.

"What level were you on?" Rinoa asked.

"Seven," Mira replied, "You'd think the exit would be down."

"You'd think," Zell echoed.

"But how would we get down there? Not level by level," Squall said.

"It looks like we're going to have to," Rinoa said with a sigh.

"Hey, I saw a lift on the previous level, maybe that can take us down," Mira said, suddenly remembering that.

"It's definitely worth a try," Quistis agreed, nodding.

Upon reaching the eighth level once more, they came across the lift that Mira had spoke of, which appeared to operate in the shaft that ran all the way through the center of the prison. The lift wasn't guarded, nor was it hard to operate, which was a little odd, but not much considering that every guard who knew they'd escaped from their cells was still out cold. Once they reached the ground floor and exited the prison, they found themselves standing in a hot desert.

"Well now, that was simple," Mira said. She turned; in the distance was Galabadia Garden. "Look, we can even report to the nearest Garden like regulations."

As they started walking, Quistis sighed and said, "I wouldn't expect a warm welcome though; we _did_ fail in our mission to assassinate the Sorceress."

"Yeah, well, we did the best we could; what do they expect of us?" Mira said, shrugging.

Quistis stopped. "A lot. We _are_ SeeD, an elite mercenary force-"

"Blah, blah, blah, we still did all we could," Mira repeated.

Shaking her head, Quistis continued walking.

--------------

Mira gaped in awe; Galabadia was so much bigger then Tribia or Balamb Gardens, it was overwhelming. So were the small crafts that hovered around the Garden or came in for a landing on the long strip of pavement, though, 'small' was about three times the size of any person. As they walked up, students passed by, uncaring of their arrival.

"We should find the headmaster," Quistis stated, looking to the others.

"You guys do that, I want to look around," Mira said, her gaze still wandering to all the new sights.

She meandered away from the others, finding out that Galabadia Garden had four levels, but that when she tried to enter the fourth, guards told her it was off limits for students. Obviously they didn't know she was from Balamb, but she wasn't about to tell them that, as Balamb students especially probably weren't supposed to be wandering about. She walked away disappointed yet curious, when she happened to pass by two students whispering excitedly about Sorceress Adel and her Knight being on the fourth froze; the Sorceress…here in Garden? She had to tell the others, if it was true.

She was just rushing down stairs to ground floor when she crashed into Zell and the others. "Sorceress Adel is…" she panted, trying to catch her breath.

"On the fourth floor, we just heard," Quistis nodded.

"What are we going to do?" Mira asked.

"Hard to believe…the Sorceress, at Garden the whole time," Zell said, shaking his head.

"What can we do?" Rinoa said, "She_ is_ the Sorceress."

"We have to fight her, and win," Mira exclaimed.

"And how do you think we're supposed to do this by ourselves?" Squall asked, turning his blue eyes to her.

"Adel killed my mother; I can't just let her walk free," Mira said, eyes blazing, "We have to do this…for everyone else Adel's going to end up hurting or killing. Who's with me?"

One by one, the others all agreed that it was what they had to do. They hurried to the fourth floor where the guards tried to stop them, but were no match for four determined SeeDs. The fourth floor was like a maze, almost like there was an enchantment over it to stop them. What was creepy though, was that the entire floor was completely empty; there was no one around.

At last, they reached a set of huge, double doors and Mira glanced around at the others, scared, ready, muscles tense. She pulled open the doors, revealing the room beyond to be quite large, with a marble floor etched with symbols. Standing in front of another set of elaborately decorated doors at the opposite side of the room, was…Seifer.


	5. Face Off

**Chapter Five – "**_**Face Off**_**"**

Mira froze, her heart skipped a beat; Seifer…did this mean that he really _was_ the Sorceress' Knight? He certainly appeared to be guarding whatever was behind that door-probably Adel. Would they have to fight him to reach the Sorceress?

Seifer stepped forward and Mira knew the answer, just by the expression on his face. Her heart sank.

"Mira?" Rinoa said, unsure, as she looked to the other young woman.

"You guys go; I'll take care of Seifer," she answered, her tone sad but determined.

She stepped forward and raised her Gunblade. The others were still unsure, but when Seifer and Mira began to circle each other, they saw their chance to get through the door and took it. Mira watched the others go, her heart pounding.

"You shouldn't be here, Mira," Seifer said.

"Why not?" she asked.

"You'll fail in our mission; the Sorceress is well protected," he said.

"We'll see about that," she countered.

"Are you really going to fight me, Mira?" Seifer taunted.

She closed her eyes. God no; she didn't want to fight him, she…cared about him, she couldn't deny that to herself for any longer. "I will if I have to," she said firmly, opening her eyes.

"Let's get started then," Seifer said, lunging at Mira, who dodged to the side and brought her Gunblade up in defense.

"You lost to me last time," he said, turning, "What makes you think you'll win now?" He swung his Gunblade around in an arc, but Mira brought her own 'blade up to block, resulting in the clash of metal.

"Seifer, I don't want to fight you," she said softly, her eyes pleading.

"If you want to kill Adel, you have to fight me," he said.

"Then I will, and I'll win," she declared, though there was sadness in her voice, as she brought her Gunblade down.

"You can't defeat me; I'm the Sorceress's Knight!" Seifer said, blocking the blow and driving her back.

She lost her balance from the force of it, and fell, her weapon clattering noisily against the smoothly polished floor. As she gave her head a slight shake, Seifer raised his Gunblade. Her eyes widened, and she rolled swiftly to the side as he brought his Gunblade down hard and fast. The blade clashed against the floor, drawing sparks, and she found that for the moment, her legs wouldn't obey her wishes to stand.

"I told you I would win," Seifer said.

"Seifer, don't do this," Mira said, trembling.

She closed her eyes and opened them in time to see Seifer bring down his Gunblade, crying out as the blade bit into her flesh. She fell back as blood streamed down her arm and splattered on the marble floor. She gasped, equally in surprise and pain. At that moment, Seifer could have killed her, but he didn't…. Why? The blow both angered and frightened her, and she got to her feet, taking a step back.

However, there was suddenly a flash of bright light, and shouts echoed from the next room. Her gaze turned from Seifer to the door; beyond were her friends…and the Sorceress. Were they any match for Adel?

Mira raised her Gunblade in front of her, trying to ignore the wound on her arm, which was steadily bleeding, and the fact that it had been caused by some one she cared about.

"Let the blood fest begin," Seifer said.

Heart racing, she sidestepped the attack that he sent in her direction. She fought with every thing she had, because if she didn't…. Something wasn't right though, something was wrong. Of course, everything had gone wrong from the beginning of this mission, but it was something else. It took her a while to realize it; was it…possibly that she knew Seifer could fight better then this? That he had quite a few chances to kill her, but he didn't? _Why_? She blocked a blow and dodged to the side, questions swimming through her head like pesky gnats.

"Seifer, why would you want to be the Sorceress's Knight? Adel…" Mira broke off. She had almost said that Adel had killed her mother.

"Why?" he repeated, "Sorceress Adel has unbelievable power; her knight would also become powerful."

"This is about power?" she burst, her voice rising.

"Enemies of the Sorceress would be crushed by Adel's power," Seifer said.

She didn't understand; all of this was about power? Weren't there more important things in the world then power?

He drove Mira back, her eyes darting about as her heart pounded. She knew somewhere deep down, that she wasn't a match for Seifer; she'd never match his power. '_Never say never_,' she told herself; she could win if she tried, if she believed that she could.

However, it was during this that she was driven back against the marble wall, his strength far exceeding hers. She had no where to turn; there was a stone pillar to her right and a statue to her left. She felt Seifer's Gunblade against her throat, her grip on her own 'blade tight, her heart racing.

"Seifer, why are you doing this?" Mira said in a pleading tone.

"I'm not gonna kill you, Mira," he said.

"What?" she said faintly.

"It's not time," Seifer said before vanishing in a flash of light.

Mira jumped, startled, but still, a wave of relief washed over her and she felt her tense muscles relax. She sighed, but then a stab of pain lanced through her body and she remembered the bleeding wound on her arm. She winced and wiped some of the blood off her skin. It was then that she also remembered the others, and with a small gasp, bolted into the next room, her Gunblade raised. What she found was Quistis, Rinoa, Zell and Squall, all a bit bruised, but alive, and neither Adel nor Seifer were in sight.

"Are you guys all right?" Mira asked, "What happened?"

"We were just about to blast the Sorceress when she turned the tide and vanished," Zell replied.

"Seifer left too," Mira said softly.

"Mira? Are you alright?" Quistis asked, alarmed at the blood on Mira's arm.

Mira waved away the question, "I'm fine," she said, "Now, let's get out of here and find a town with an Inn or something so we can figure out what to do next."

The others agreed and they headed for the first floor, but little did they know that they were walking into a trap.


	6. Three Headed Hell

**Chapter Six – "**_**Three-Headed Hell**_**"**

Mira and the others took an elevator down to the first floor, the air thick with tension. When they reached the main lobby however, they found quite a surprise; standing in a pillar of light that shone down from the skylight was a massive, three headed dog. It was jet black with a long, scaly tail, and the claws on its mammoth paws resembled stake knives.

"Whoa," Zell exclaimed, stepping back, "That is _so_ not good; it has three heads!"

The dog growled, the sound like a rumble of thunder, which was accompanied by the angry and hungry look in all three pairs of its eyes.

"What_ is_ that thing?" Mira said eyes wide in disbelief.

"I see you admire my pet."

They all flinched, turning towards the voice to see that, behind the three headed dog, on the second floor balcony, was Seifer.

"Your pet?" she repeated skeptically.

"It's a Fenrir, guard dog to the gates of Hell," Seifer said, "You ain't got a chance against Cerberus, so I'd suggest you quit."

"Never," she declared, raising her Gunblade in front of her.

"Knew you'd say that," Seifer said, "Have fun."

She tightened her grip on her Gunblade, heart pounding.

"Cerberus! Listen up," Seifer commanded, "Kill the others, but bring me Mira."

"As you wish, Master," the three heads of the dog replied in a deep, rumbling voice that was almost unintelligible.

"Prepare to meet your doom, SeeD!" the left head growled.

She stared at the dog with raised eyebrows, "I don't think so," she said.

The dog leaped out of the light and soared through the air at the SeeDs.

Mira's eyes widened as she dove out of the way, Cerberus's three heads snapping at Quistis, Squall, and Zell as Rinoa darted behind them. Mira got to her feet and rushed the dog from behind when its whip-like tail lashed out and sent her flying across the lobby. She cried out as she smashed into a potted plant, the large ceramic pot shattering as she rolled out of the way. She sprang to her feet and hacked at Cerberus's side, catching the immense creature by surprise. It couldn't leap back in time, but it didn't matter, as her Gunblade only bounced off its thick hide.

Mira's eyebrows shot up in surprise as Cerberus growled and leaped at her. She shouted as the dog's front paws hit her shoulders, its two-inch claws sinking into her flesh as the three headed beast pinned her down. She cried out in pain and kicked at Cerberus as she couldn't use her Gunblade since it was pinned between the two of them. Suddenly, some one leaped onto Cerberus's back and began pounding the dog's shoulders, causing it to rear back in surprise.

"Zell!" she gasped, "Are you crazy!?"

Cerberus leaped off of her so it could better attack Zell. Finding herself free, Mira sprang to her feet and swung her Gunblade at the dog's heads with all her might, however, it pulled back just in time. But this sudden motion sent Zell flying, who crashed into Squall, and took them both to the floor. The dog snapped at Mira, who jumped out of the way.

Looking up, she saw the dog's scaly tail wrapped around Rinoa's neck and beginning to choke her. Heart thundering, Mira leaped onto Cerberus and raced towards its tail, swinging her Gunblade as hard as she could. Cerberus howled in pain as she loped off the end of its tail. Rinoa fell to the ground, safe, as what remained of Cerberus's bloody tail smashed into Mira and sent her flying. She crashed into the marble floor, loosing her grip on her Gunblade as pain lanced through her body. She cried out as she heard Seifer laughed. Rage, and…power, unlike any other, filled her as she climbed to her feet, her eyes a jet black.

"I call for a class of stars," Mira's voice rang out, clear as a bell, "Grant me your aid and dispatch this evil that opposes me."

Cerberus froze at her words, odd to see the huge beast just stop. The roof above them faded out, five stars glowing bright in the suddenly dark sky.

"I call!" she shouted.

The five stars glowed brighter at her command, lightning lancing down from the stars. Four raced towards Cerberus, the last veering off toward Seifer, who held his ground and only raised his Gunblade. He deflected the lightning shaped power and glared at Mira as the first four lightning bolts reached Cerberus; it was a direct hit. Her eyes returned to their normal green color as the three headed dog in front of her roared and fell to its knees.

The ceiling reappeared as Cerberus gazed up at Mira respectfully, maybe a little fearful. "Powerful one, I apologize for challenging you," It said in its deep, rumbling voice, "I am a Guardian Force; I wish to join you."

Mira stood where she was for a moment, surprised and dazed at what she had done. She considered what Cerberus had said; it had tried to kill them, but it was only following Seifer's orders.

"Sure…you can join us or whatever," she said, still slightly dazed.

Her eyes darted to the balcony, but Seifer was gone, and the others were staring at her.

As Cerberus faded out and surfaced in that corner of her mind with Moneros, she avoided her companion's eyes. They were silent as they headed out of Garden, and when walking to the nearest train station that would take them to the sea-side city of Deling once more.

Those present at the train station steered clear of the blood-covered teenagers.

The trip to Deling City was also silent; no one said a word to Mira. They treated her like she was different…or maybe they were just as surprised as she was…


	7. Witch

**A/N: **The holidays distracted me from updating recently, so I'll be putting up a bunch of chapters, maybe all the rest, so I can move on to posting the parts of the sequel that I have finished so far.

* * *

**Chapter Seven – "**_**Witch**_**"**

When they reached the city of Deling once more, it was evening; it was also a bit hard to find a hotel-no one wanted to house five bloody teenagers.

Finally, though, they did find a place, and Mira locked herself in the bathroom, turning on the water in the shower. She carefully slipped out of her clothes, which were sticking to her skin because of the blood. The kind Innkeeper had lent them some clothes so she didn't really worry about the condition of hers.

Mira stepped into the hot water, wincing as it stung her wounds. Blood beginning to stream down her legs as she scrubbed it off her face and arms, and during this she discovered that her injuries weren't as severe as she had thought; a few large bruises, the slash on her arm and some various cuts and scraps.

_She still couldn't explain what she had done earlier. _

After her shower, she went out for a walk before it got too dark, making her way along the beach, where the waves lapped gently at the sand. It was so much like Balamb, except she wasn't even on the same continent. How much she missed home. Even though…her home was really in Tribia, with all that snow, and those mountains, in the few short days she'd been at Balamb, she'd come to consider it her home already.

"Mira!" a familiar voice behind her called.

She turned, relieved to see that it was only Zell, and paused so he could catch up. "What's up?" she asked, forcing a smile as the wind sifted through her hair.

"Nothin'," Zell said, "It's just…" he paused, as if unsure, and then plunged ahead, "Your fight with Seifer…how'd you do?"

"Terrible," she said with a bitter laugh, staring out at sea for a moment.

"He did that to you, didn't he?" he asked, meaning the slash on her arm.

"Yeah. You know something, I don't get him," Mira said with a sigh, "He could have killed me, but he didn't." She suppressed a shudder at the memory of the 'Blade at her throat.

"What d'you think about him now?" he asked.

"What?" she questioned, frowning.

"I saw you with him at the party," he said, "You two were all buddy-buddy."

"Well, we were just talking," Mira shrugged.

"Just talking?" he repeated, "Looked like more then that to me."

"Maybe I liked him," she said after a moment of silence, "At the party, when we talked, he opened up to me," she paused and turned to face Zell, then continued, "Dropped the tough act, and you know, he's really kinda nice."

"Whoa, 'nice'? Are we still talking about Seifer?" Zell said.

She nodded slowly, "We are," she said, "…Did you know he's an orphan?"

"He never mentioned that," he said, blinking in slight surprise.

"So am I," she continued, "My father…died a few years after my mother."

There was moment during which neither of them said a word.

"I was sent to Garden when I was about five," Mira said, "And-this is gonna sound weird-but I feel like I've met Seifer before. Although I never have."

She turned to stare out at the ocean again, finding that the sun had set and the moon had yet to inhabit the sky.

There was silence again, which was beginning to become awkward.

"I'm gonna go back to the hotel now; tired," Mira said.

More silence followed her words, so she turned and headed across the beach towards the hotel, the Prancing Pony Inn. That night, Mira fell asleep instantly, but she had nightmares, nightmares of Seifer and Adel…

------

The next morning she slept late, and so was the last to awaken, though when she did, she found that she was alone. Upon discovering the note that lay on the coffee table, she went over and picked it up, her eyes skimming over it.

'_Went out to get tickets for a train home, back soon-_

_Quistis'._

So; she was all by herself. She frowned; how exciting. But maybe she'd finally get a bit of peace and quiet.

However, she was just about to go out and get some breakfast when Quistis returned, seeming troubled.

"Is something wrong?" Mira asked.

Quistis nodded, "We have to get out of here, now; Galabadia soldiers are on their way to arrest five SeeDs who attacked the Sorceress," she said, "The others are waiting at the train station."

Mira's eyes widened, "Alright; let's go," she said, grabbing her Gunblade.

Together, they took back alleys to the station where they met up with the others and boarded the train headed for Balamb. The train was pulling out of the station just as they saw the first Galabadia soldiers, but by the time the soldiers saw _them_, the train was in motion and there was nothing they could do to stop it.

As the train rumbled through the underwater tunnel, Mira sighed in relief and leaned back in her seat; they had made it. Homeward bound at last. She closed her eyes and smiled to herself, but then opened them to find Zell watching her, although he blushed and quickly looked away. She raised her eyebrows and giggled softly, wondering if Zell…liked her_._

The trip back to Balamb was boring, but a good kind of boring, the safe and un-stressful kind. It was a while later when they actually reached the town, and as soon as they got off the train, they headed for Garden. Everything was quiet, peaceful, when they arrived, and it was soothing to see that the place hadn't been destroyed or such in their absence.

Mira had just headed to her dorm room to change when there was a knock on her door that surprised her.

"I might never get a moment to myself," she muttered, walking over and opening the door.

It was Selphie, from the SeeD Exam. "Headmaster Cid wants to see you on the third floor, his office," the brunette said.

Mira held in her groan and nodded.

On her way to the elevator, she bumped into Quistis, Rinoa, Zell and Squall, also on their way to the elevator.

"Don't tell me you guys are going to see the Headmaster too," she joked, trying to lighten her sudden feeling of unease.

"We are, in fact," Quistis replied.

But before anyone could say any more, there was a shout and a group of students ran by, followed by more shouting and running.

Mira stopped one of the passing cadets. "What's going on?" she demanded.

"Galabadia Garden is headed right for us!" the student replied.

"What?" she gasped.

"Go up to the second floor and see for yourself," he said, rushing off.

Mira reached the second floor balcony first, leaning forward on the metal railing as she stared, almost unable to believe her eyes. It was true; Galabadia Garden was hovering just over the ground as it raced towards them. Since when could the Gardens fly, or hover, and how had it managed to get here so soon? And for what purpose? She heard the others come up behind her, and glanced back at them with wide eyes.

"It's going to ram us!" Quistis shouted over the noise of the approaching Garden.

That was true, but Mira had suddenly caught sight of a figure standing on the deck of the Garden, though was unable to tell who from this distance. Looking around, she discovered a pair of binoculars on the deck by her feet-some one must have been doing some bird watching at some point-and quickly stooped to pick them up. Raising them in front of her eyes, she continuously zoomed in and focused until she could clearly make out the figure. When she did, however, the binoculars slipped from her hands and fell with a clatter against the metal. She could hear some one saying her name, but the voice sounded so far away. All she could think was that…the figure she saw standing on the deck of Galabadia Garden, and perhaps acting as its commander in this assault…was Seifer.


	8. Garden Assault

**Chapter Eight – "**_**Garden Assault**_**"**

Mira could only stare as Galabadia rammed into Balamb Garden, her mind still swimming with having seen who stood on the deck of the opposing Garden. She didn't know where anyone else was in this moment of chaos, she was too lost in her own thoughts, but the next thing she knew, the force of the collision had blasted her back where she crashed against the floor, struggling to hold on to her consciousness. However, no matter how hard she tried, she must have blacked out anyway, at least for a few moments, because she awoke to the sounds of shouting and explosions.

That brought her quickly back to the real world, and she blinked rapidly, giving her head a slight shake in an attempt to clear the black butterflies from her vision. Picking up her Gunblade from where it had fallen on the floor of the hallway next to her, she forced herself to her feet and hurried to the elevator. She didn't see anyone she recognized yet, and wondered what had happened to them, hoping that they were alright.

On the first floor, it was pandemonium; Balamb students ran about, but there didn't seem to be enough SeeDs to help everyone-Galabadia Soldiers were everywhere, some how having managed to board the Garden swiftly. Mira stared in horror, unsure of what to do, until someone screamed.

"Someone! Save the Junior Classmen!" a woman shouted.

Mira turned to see a group of children huddled together, cornered by a Galabadia soldier. Anger filled her, but she wasn't close enough to stop the soldier herself.

"Moneros! I summon you!" she called, "Save the children!"

The striking being blinked into existence behind the soldier, plunging its horn forward with a screamed war cry. The soldier fell as a SeeD rushed over to the children, shouting a thank-you to Mira, who nodded and leaped into the fray.

Her mind was swimming; was Seifer behind this attack? She really didn't have any time to ponder this question though as she fought off Galabadian soldiers; she couldn't be every where at once. There were too many soldiers…she would have to kill their commander so that no more would be ordered into battle. That meant…If Seifer was their commander…she might have to… She shook her head.

"Stay focused, do what you have to," she told herself.

She turned and strode for the elevator; she was going to board Galabadia Garden. However, she crashed into Squall along the way.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"To Galabadia Garden, to take care of the enemy commander," Mira replied.

"That's not a job to do alone," Squall said, "I'm going with you."

She nodded and the both of them headed up to the second floor, to the balcony. Since Galabadia Garden had crashed into them, it would be easy to climb aboard. Once they were there, she glanced over at him.

"You ready?" she asked.

He nodded, "Let's go."

As one, they leaped onto Galabadia Garden without much difficulty. The Soldiers preparing to board Balamb Garden didn't seem to realize that they weren't from Galabadia, and they certainly weren't about to say otherwise.

Mira didn't know what level they were on, but she didn't feel like stopping any of the soldiers to ask for directions; that would have been a little odd, and it would have blown their cover. They went up to the next floor, level three as they discovered, and found that things were just as crazy there, but she happened to notice a quiet, curving hallway. She nudged Squall and nodded towards the hall. He nodded as well, and together, they cautiously walked down the hallway, which twisted off into a room. Mira stuck her head around the corner; inside the room were two teenagers, both of them only about eighteen or nineteen, and behind them, was another door. Looked like they were guarding something.

She turned back to Squall. "Looks like we found something," she whispered.

"Wait a minute," he said, "I know those two; they're from Balamb."

Surprised, she glanced back into the room. "Really?" she said.

"Fujin and Raijin," he said, "They're Seifer's friends."

Her eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Seifer's friends? From Balamb?" she exclaimed in a whisper. "What are they doing here?" To tell the truth, she didn't know Seifer _had _friends.

"We're going to have to get past them to reach that door," she pointed out. "I've got an idea," she continued, "You distract them, and I'll get through that door."

"Maybe _you_ should distract them," he said.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" she asked, sounding somewhat miffed, "I can handle myself you know."

"…Fine," Squall nodded at last, "But be prepared; you don't know what to expect."

She took a deep breath, "Whenever you're ready," She said, stepping back, out of sight in the deep shadows.

She watched while Squall got Fujin and Raijin's attention. As soon as they were out of sight, she slipped into the once guarded room and swiftly made her way over to the door. Glancing around, she kicked the door open, a breeze immediately blowing through it as she made her way forward, and she found herself on some sort of platform. There was no railing, nothing to stop you if you fell, and there was also Seifer. He turned to Mira with a sarcastic smile on his face, and she gripped her Gunblade tighter, her heart beginning to pound.

"Mira, I figured you'd try to come here," Seifer said, "But I didn't think you'd actually make it."

"Yeah, well, I did," she said, sidestepping. "There's something I need to know," she paused, dreading the answer, "Are you the one commanding the attack on Balamb Garden?"

He laughed, "So you've got the brains, but you ain't got the brawn."

Her heart sank; he _was_ in command...and she'd come here to kill him. But no…she couldn't kill Seifer. Strong-she had to be strong. Lifting her chin a little higher, she stared right at him.

"I've come to stop the attack on Balamb Garden," she hesitated, "I'll do whatever I have to."

She gripped her Gunblade tighter and took a deep breath. For a moment, she felt weak-_kill Seifer_? No. She couldn't do that. No way, no how. Why was Seifer like this? Was he under a spell or something? Was the Sorceress manipulating him somehow?

Seifer smiled; a pure, true smile, that made her resolve waver. That was the smile she had fallen in love with. _In….love_? _Did she…love….Seifer_? To be honest, she wasn't really sure…

"We don't have to be enemies, Mira," Seifer said, "You can join me, and we can rule the world, or…"

She wasn't really aware of the situation anymore; she was lost in what he was saying, lost in his smile, his voice. She wanted this to be true, but a sense of dread settled over her. She tried to ignore it, taking a single step forward, her grip on her Gunblade loose. She'd let her guard down, and didn't quite register Seifer's wicked smile until it was too late.

"…Or you can die," he said in a dark tone.

Mira snapped out of her trance like state as he grabbed her by the throat, gasping as her feet left the ground.


	9. Lies

**A/N: **Thank you for the review! x3

* * *

**Chapter Nine – "**_**Lies**_**"**

Mira released her Gunblade, which clattered to the floor below her as she was seized by surprise. She gasped as Seifer single-handedly held her in the air by her neck, on instinct struggling to free herself, but it was no use; she couldn't breathe. It only took a moment for stars to erupt before her eyes and she grew dizzy, clawing uselessly at his gloved hand.

"It didn't have to end like this Mira, but those who oppose the Sorceress must die," Seifer said.

Her eyes turned black as she continued to struggle. "Flame!" She gasped out.

Appearing out of nowhere, a fireball crashed into him and she found herself falling free. She tumbled to the floor, gasping in air, and looked up just in time to see Seifer reeling towards the edge of the deck.

Her eyes widened. "No! Seifer!" She cried.

Forcing herself quickly to her feet, she reached out, her hands just managing to grab on to the edges of his coat. Leaning backwards, she pulled him with her, and they both fell to the floor once more, both safe. If he had fallen over the edge…

"Why'd you save me?" he asked after a moment.

"I-I just couldn't let you die…" Mira said softly.

"'Couldn't'? Ain't that what you came here to do?" he said as they both stood.

"I came here to kill the one in charge," she said, her voice dropping to a whisper.

"Why didn't you?"

She shook her head, "I can't kill you, or anyone," she said.

"With that attitude, you ain't got a chance agains' Adel," Seifer said.

For a moment after that, neither of them spoke a word.

"Yesterday," she said finally, "When you had the chance…why didn't you kill me?"

Something flickered through his eyes, "…It's not time," he replied.

She picked up her Gunblade, trying to understand what he meant but not daring to ask any more about it…afraid to get an answer that she didn't want to hear…or maybe one that she _did_. She slowly backed out the door, and Seifer didn't try to stop her. When she was sure that he couldn't see her, she ran down the hallway, ending up crashing into Squall again in the first room.

"Did you find the commander?' he asked.

"No," she lied, "Let's check the other floors."

He seemed a bit…something she couldn't quite place, but nodded anyway.

They were about to split up again, as was his idea, when the whole Garden abruptly shook.

"They're moving!" Mira said, almost loosing her balance, "We have to get out of here!"

Together, they raced back to the second where they had boarded Galabadia Garden; yes, they were most definitely moving away from Balamb Garden, which meant that they had to act now or be stuck on enemy territory.

Squall jumped across the space quickly, and then turned back to her. "Come on!" he shouted.

But Mira was frozen, eyes wide, as the gap between the Gardens grew.

"Mira?"

"I-I can't," she felt dizzy, "J-jump." The ground seemed to be moving farther and farther away, even though it was only the two Gardens that were moving farther apart.

"What, why not?" Squall demanded.

"I-I'm afraid of h-heights," she replied, her voice wavering.

"Well that's just great," he said sarcastically, "Perfect time to tell me."

"That's a great attitude you've got, I feel so much better," she shot back, giving him a dark look.

"Mira! You have to jump now!" he called, "If you don't, you'll never make it!"

She stared at the gap, then gritted her teeth and took a deep breath. She raced for the edge and leaped. Time seemed to slow down as she dove through the air, her eyes widening as she realized that she wasn't going to make it, she'd hesitated for too long. Her fingers brushed the edge of the platform that jutted out from the side of Balamb Garden, slowing her down a little, but her momentum continued to carry her forward until she slammed into the side with a cry. She wasn't going to make it, she was going to slip away and fall to her doom, but suddenly, some one grabbed her arm and began to pull her up. Another person grabbed her other arm and together they heaved her up to safety.

She stood up, trembling slightly, but alive. "Thanks; you saved my life," she said, her voice shaking faintly.

"No problem," Zell said, but Squall remained silent.

Back inside Garden, the crisis was over and mostly everyone was safe; students and SeeD members had begun to repair whatever damage had been done during the attack.

-------------

It was evening, and Mira had headed over to the Quad to help out with repairs when Squall came up to her.

"Why'd you lie to me?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" she frowned, heart thumping.

"On Galabadia. You lied about not finding the commander," he said.

Surprised, she looked down at the floor for a second, the brief motion revealing that she had indeed lied. She didn't say anything.

"I saw you with Seifer," Squall continued, "He's tried to kill you before, so, why didn't you tell me? …Are you trying to protect him?"

"I-I don't know, there's just…I mean…I…" she faltered.

"Are you…" he paused, "In love with him or something?"

"I'm…not sure," she admitted, "I think…maybe…"

"How could you actually…?" he exclaimed.

"I dunno, I guess I just don't hate him like you do," she shot back, her temper flaring.

"I don't hate him. I just don't get all starry-eyed when I see him," he said flatly.

"You do too hate him," she snapped, "If you knew Seifer the way I do…"

"And how do you know him?" he inquired.

"At the SeeD Party, when I talked to him, it was like he was a different person," Mira replied, "It-I saw a kind, sensitive person. I think he acts tough because that's how he deals. It's not easy being an orphan you know."

"I know that," he said.

"So I guess that's another thing we have in common, _unfortunately_," she said, "Fine; I don't like Seifer, happy now?"

"No, cause you know what this proves? You really do…care for him," he said.

"Who the hell cares," she snapped, leaving the Quad, and Squall, behind.

She blinked back tears as she walked, she didn't know why she felt like crying, this was all so idiotic really. What did it matter to him how she felt about Seifer? But…she knew the answer though, and that was why she was so upset over it. Her feelings clouded her judgment, and because of that…there would likely be more trouble still.

"How could I-shit, how could I be so stupid?" she whispered to herself.

She paused by the fountain that surrounded the elevator shaft, peering down into its depths, her rippled reflection peering back up. She sighed and headed for her dorm room. Seifer's half was empty now and she wondered who she would be sharing it with, but to be honest, she didn't want a new roommate.

Tired, she went to bed early, everything that had happened recently on her mind as she drifted into an uneasy sleep. She only awoke once during the night, when she thought she heard Seifer call her name, but saw that there was no one there. She wasn't able to fall back to sleep after that, and so got up with a sigh. She dressed silently, not that it mattered since there was no one else in the dorm room to disturb, and walked out onto her balcony where vines grew on a bit of lattice work near the railing. She didn't even smile at the scent of her favorite flower, jasmine, as something was troubling her. She wasn't sure what though, but it was obviously something, nagging at the back of her mind.

Or maybe it was the fact that she felt that she wasn't alone anymore, causing her heartbeat to speed up and her muscles to tense. She didn't hear the door to her dorm open, or see the figure dressed in black from head-to-toe slip in, but she sensed him, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. Without warning, she spun and kicked the unknown intruder, who staggered back into the wall, having been caught off guard. Her mind was racing; how had an intruder gotten into Garden, after everything that had happened? She couldn't see who it was, as the intruder was wearing a ski mask, and so she moved forward swiftly and yanked off the mask.

She gasped and took a step back in surprise, dropping the mask. "Cale?" she exclaimed.

He smiled, though appeared somewhat dazed, "Mira; didn't know you were here." Though that was possibly a lie since he had, after all, been sneaking into her dorm room.

"Got transferred," she replied, "But what are you doing here? And how?"

"Sorry about sneaking up on you, but I've got news about Adel and I-" Cale started.

"Adel?" she repeated, raising her eyebrows.

"I see you haven't fallen under the Sorceress' command, like Galabadia."

"No way!" she said quickly, shaking her head.

"So I see," he grinned, "That's good to hear."

Mira's own grin was lopsided; he really was handsome, with his messy blonde hair and dark blue eyes, and his smile just melted her heart. They _had_ been together after all, back when she'd been at Tribia Garden. Leaving him had been hard, and she hadn't thought she could make it without him, but then she'd met Seifer, who reminded her so much of Cale, in appearance at least, and she'd fallen in love again-though _not_ for the resemblance. But this wasn't the time to reminisce about an old boyfriend; matters were serious.

"If you have news about Adel, we should tell the Headmaster," she said, "Even if it's early, he'll want to hear about this.'

Cale nodded, no longer smiling.

------------------

"Sir," Mira said to the Headmaster, "This is SeeD Cale Sanders from Tribia Garden. He brings news about Sorceress Adel."

"So I've heard," Cid said, "Tell me Cale, what do you know?"

"Sir, Tribia Garden has been fighting Adel and her Galabadian Army," Cale said, "The Army is led by a Gunblade fighter who calls himself 'The Sorceress' Knight'-"

Mira inhaled sharply; _Seifer._

"-And we have news that he is in the town of Balamb."

"Why? What interest would they have in Balamb?" Cid asked.

"Not sure, Sir, but rumor has it that they're looking for a _Carlton_," Cale turned slightly to look at Mira.

The Headmaster was silent for a moment. "Mira, would you happen to know anything about this?" he said at last.

She hesitated a second before answering, "No sir," she replied.

"Very well," Cid sighed, "I will think about the matter; you two may go now."

"I can't believe this is happening," she said as she and Cale took the elevator to the first floor, "I mean, five days ago I transferred here. And now this."

"It isn't easy being a SeeD," Cale said.

"Do I know it," she muttered as they stepped off the elevator. "So, how long are you going to be here?" she asked.

"As long as the people of Balamb Garden need me to be here," he replied.

She let a moment of silence pass. "I know at least one person who needs you," she said finally.

"Who?" he asked.

"Me."


	10. Unpleasant Surprise

**Chapter Ten – "**_**Unpleasant Surprise**_**"**

When Mira opened her eyes for the second time that morning, the sun was already peeking over the horizon, which meant it was about time to get up, though she didn't want to; she was content, for once, right where she was. She snuggled closer to Cale, and drifted back to sleep. It seemed like only minutes later, the chime of her alarm was sounding; time to wake up.

With a groan, she batted at her clock, but realized after a moment that the chime was coming from the speaker mounted on the wall. Something had to be up if _that_ was going off.

Slowly, she opened her eyes; she just wanted to go back to sleep, but she knew she couldn't.

------------------------

She, Cale, Zell, Rinoa, and Squall were assembled in the Headmaster's office.

"I want you five to go to the town of Balamb and find out what Galabadia wants," Headmaster Cid said, "With out getting caught, of course," he added.

"Yes, sir," they said in unison.

"Mira, you will be in charge of the operation," the Headmaster said, "Do not fail."

She nodded.

They set off for Balamb soon after that, traveling in silence.

----------------------

Galabadia Garden was positioned in the forest to the right of the town, but other then that, Mira could see no evidence that Galabadia had taken over the small sea-side town.

"What are we supposed to be looking for?" Zell asked, at last breaking the silence.

She cocked her head to the side as she considered that. "I really don't know," she replied, glancing over at Cale.

It was just the three of them for now; soon after entering town, they had split into two groups so they wouldn't attract as much attention.

"I suppose," Mira said thoughtfully, "We should figure out how to get into Galabadia Garden." She shook her head and laughed softly, "After all the trouble I went through to get _out_ last time."

She squinted up at the sun for a moment. After a moment, there came a faint rumbling sound that made her stop where she was, causing Zell to accidentally crash into her, knocking them both off balance for a moment. She didn't even hear his stammered apology though as she gazed up at the sky, as that's where the odd noise seemed to be coming from.

"Does anyone else hear that?" she asked.

"I do," Cale said, nodding.

She continued to search the skies for the source of the sound, not seeing anything for the longest time. It was then that they all saw three missiles veering down through the clouds towards Balamb Garden. Mira's eyes widened as she tried to fully understand what was happening. Missiles…Garden…an attack…. It seemed to all happen in slow motion as the missiles dove closer and closer to their target, colliding, and then…there was the explosion.

She thought she screamed as smoke and flame pillared up to the sky, but she wasn't sure. The roar of the explosion deafened her as the force of the shockwave knocked her off her feet. She struggled to stand, knowing the others were doing the same, but was unable to take her eyes off the spot where Garden had once been. Her home…their home…everyone who had been in there, all un-expecting…all gone now.

Cries of surprise and fear were echoing from all over town.

"Adel," Mira growled.

"What the…?" a familiar voice said.

She turned, still dazed, to see a young man standing a short distance away. She recognized him; he was a SeeD from Balamb. Just as she was about to say something to him though, he was abruptly stabbed from behind. She cried out in surprise and horror, taking a step back as the SeeD fell lifelessly to the ground, revealing that his assailant was Seifer. She blinked in bewilderment as about two dozen Galabadia soldiers rushed towards her and the others.

"Take the others; leave Mira for me," Seifer called.

She turned back to the other two; "Go!" she said.

"But-" Cale started to protest.

"Go! That's an order. Besides; this is my fight, not yours." Mira insisted.

The sight of the oncoming soldiers forced them to run, despite their hesitancy to leave her on her own. She raised her Gunblade and slowly turned to face Seifer, her heart aching at the sight him, aching that he'd just…

Seifer stepped around the body of the dead SeeD, and faced Mira as he took up a lazy fighter's stance.

"Seifer…" she said softly.

"As the sorceress's knight, I'm gonna hunt down every one of your kind, now that Garden is gone," he said.

"But…it was our home…all those people…how could you? Just because SeeD opposes Adel?" she said.

Seifer just smirked, and she knew that it was useless.

She raised her Gunblade in front of her as he began to circle around her. He made the first move, striding forward and swinging his Hyperion around in an arc that was clearly meant to take off her head, forcing her to dart to the side and block with her own Gunblade. A metallic clash echoed through the empty streets as she struck out now, only to have Seifer dodge to the side. He swung at her, and she inhaled sharply as the blade cut into her previously uninjured arm. It wasn't serious, but blood still soaked into the sleeve of her shirt. As she started to turn to face him again, she found that he wasn't where she'd expected. She began to turn again, panicking slightly due to the fact that she'd lost sight of him, but it was then that she sensed his presence behind her. She felt his arms come around her, and froze when she his Gunblade pressed against her throat.

"I'm gonna kill ya this time; sorceress's orders," Seifer whispered in her ear.

She felt him press the blade harder against her throat, and knew that if she didn't do something, that SeeD wouldn't be the only one dead on the streets of Balamb.

"Seifer, please," Mira whispered, wincing as it caused the blade to bite into her skin, "I know it was more then Adel's orders that stopped you from killing me before…"

"So?" he snapped, sounding angry.

"So…don't do this, I…" she started.

"Gimme one good reason why I shouldn't kill you," he said.

She fumbled for words, deciding to take a big risk; "…I-I know that you care about me."

For a moment, he didn't move, didn't speak, then slowly lowered his Hyperion, allowing her to step away and turn to face him, one hand on her neck.

"We shouldn't be enemies," she said, wincing slightly, "We should…"

Seifer turned toward what remained of Balamb Garden, not saying anything for a long moment, as if considering what she'd said.

"It's a shame 'bout Garden; I grew up there too," he said.

Her heart sank, "So it _was_ Adel's orders," she said.

"Yeah," he turned back to her, "Ya know…you've got guts Mira, and a quick mind. I like that about you," he said, turning and starting to walk away.

"Wait!" she called after him

Surprising her, he actually stopped and turned back to her. She stepped up at him, and kissed him, barely brushed her lips against his. She didn't say another word, didn't even see his speechless expression as she turned, running down the street. She fought back tears at the thought that she might have to kill him some day.

She hurried to find the others, where ever they were, hoping the soldiers hadn't caught them, and eventually caught up with them just outside of town.

"I think we should head to Garden," Mira said as she tried to catch her breath, "See if there are any survivors."

Nobody moved. Nobody said a word.

"What happened between you and Seifer?" Cale asked, breaking the building silence.

She looked down at the ground. "He let me live, and I let him go." She answered at last.

"What?!" Zell exclaimed, "You let Seifer go? After all he's-why?"

She looked up and met his gaze, "I can't kill him," she said simply, "I…" she didn't finish, but instead focused her gaze on the destroyed Garden ahead of them. "Hey, I think I see some one!"

She rushed on ahead of the others, heart aching, glad for the sudden distraction. As she grew closer to the ruins of Balamb, she could see the figure of Quistis, kneeling near some one-Selphie-who appeared to be unconscious.

"Quistis!" Mira called, almost dropping her Gunblade as she broke into a run.

Quistis looked up, "Mira! You're alive! I was afraid the Galabadian soldiers got you," she cried.

"Not a chance! What's wrong?" Mira asked, sliding to a stop beside Quistis.

"It's Selphie! I found her after the blast," Quistis said, "But she won't wake up..."

"No," Mira whispered, tears gathering in her eyes. More death…she couldn't bare it. Couldn't some one do something?

All of a sudden, there was a gentle tap on her shoulder, and she looked up, surprised; beside her stood Moneros. Her eyes widened; never before had her Guardian Force appeared unsummoned, the being must have reacted to her emotions.

"If you can do something, anything…then please…" she whispered.

Moneros stepped over to Selphie, tapping its horn once on the girl's chest, causing a black light to briefly surround her. The two humans and one Gf waited anxiously in silence for a few moments, until suddenly the fallen SeeD coughed and opened her emerald green eyes.

"What happened?" she groaned.

Mira and Quistis both began talking at the same time as the others approached. Zell seemed surprised to see the GF standing there, uncontrolled by Mira, but the others merely glanced at the being, and then focused their attention on the three SeeDs. Mira looked up, and saw Galabadia Garden slowly heading in their direction.

"We've got company," she pointed out, standing, "We can't stay here," she turned back to Selphie, "Can you walk?"

"I don't know," Selphie said, shaking her head.

Quistis helped her stand, and immediately, Mira could see how wobbly Selphie was on her feet.

"You can ride Moneros," Mira said, "If that's alright," she added, turning to Moneros, who nodded its head, silver horn glinting in the afternoon sunlight.

Mira helped Selphie mount the horse GF, and then got on behind her.

"Head for the trees!" Mira called to the others, grabbing a fistful of Moneros's mane in each hand, not only to steady herself, but to steady Selphie.

Moneros took off in a steady pace, leading the group of SeeDs. It seemed to take forever to reach the safety of the forest, but at last they were there, and they could breathe at least a small sigh of relief for the moment. Selphie and Mira remained mounted as they watched Galabadia Garden fire upon the remains of Balamb Garden, ensuring there were no survivors. The sight angered Mira, but there was nothing she could do, and she knew it; there was no way she could take on the whole of Galabadia.

Galabadian soldiers began exiting the Garden…and began marching directly towards the band of trees were Mira and the others were hiding.

"Split up!" Mira said, "We have to split up and run, make it harder for them to find us. Cale, Quistis; take care of Selphie. Squall, Rinoa, Zell; you guys are together. I'll be with Moneros and draw the soldiers' attention."

She helped Selphie slide off Moneros, and then moved forward so she sat just behind the horse's withers. She looked around at her comrades. "Be careful you guys," she said softly.

Not waiting for any response, because she was sure that some one would protest, she looked straight ahead, gripping Moneros's mane tightly. She took a deep breath, a look of determination in her eyes. She didn't even need to urge her GF forward; their minds were linked after all, so Moneros knew what Mira wanted even before she did. They rode from the woods, facing the oncoming army of Galabadia soldiers.

"Hey! All you Galabadian bastards! Over here!" she shouted as Moneros reared back.

The soldiers looked over at her. "SeeD!" they shouted just before they turned their aim towards her and gunfire ripped through the air.


	11. Promises Made

**Chapter Eleven – "**_**Promises Made**_**"**

Moneros galloped along, barely dodging the bullets, not that the GF could actually take permanent damage, but Mira could. She leaned low over her GF's neck, getting as close as she possibly could so as to make a smaller target. There was another clump of trees ahead, and that's what she was aiming for. The soldiers were behind them, though not too close, as they nowhere near matched the speed of the free running GF. They were almost there, if they could just make it...

"Yes," she hissed through gritted teeth as she and Moneros entered the band of trees.

She slid off Moneros and gripped her Gunblade. Her GF faded and she could feel Moneros's mind surface within her own. She mentally thanked her GF and waited for the Galabadian soldiers, having had counted only about a dozen after her. When they suddenly they burst into the woods, she saw that she'd been wrong; there was closer to _two_ dozen. The fighting began after that, and the details all blurred together, but the next thing she knew, her Gunblade was knocked violently from her hand and she was swept off her feet. She was still stunned from the force of the blow when a Galabadia soldier towered above her.

"So long SeeD," he said with a cruel laugh, raising his weapon.

However, before he could deal the final attack, he was struck from behind, and with a surprised expression tumbled to the ground.

"Seifer!" She cried, climbing to her feet, her mind was reeling; Seifer had saved her, after he'd already tried to kill her three times before. Why?

"I've been thinking 'bout what you said earlier," he said, "An' I think you're right." He paused, probably due to her surprised expression; Seifer admit that someone else was right? "We're on different sides, but I don't hate you, and you obviously don't hate me."

There was a moment of silence, mainly because she had no idea what to say; the turn of events was shocking. "Seifer, what…?" she started.

"Came to warn you; the sorceress has a new weapon," he said.

"A new weapon?" she started, but then he was gone. She flinched, looking around; _how the hell did he do that_? Something definitely wasn't right about that…it _had_ been Seifer that rescued her right…? She was absolutely positive? Or…could it have been some sort of…nah, that was crazy thinking.

Frowning, she summoned Moneros, mounting the being when it faded into reality. Moneros galloped back toward the others; she had to help her comrades. The two of them reached the band of trees, only to see….Seifer, fighting alongside the others. Moneros came to a halt so suddenly that Mira was thrown forward onto the GF's neck. Staring, she righted herself, then slid down and leaped into the fray. It only took a few moments for the remaining soldiers to be defeated.

"What's _he_ doing here?" Zell demanded, glaring at Seifer, who remained silent and only glared back.

But Mira saw the confused look in Seifer's eyes, as if he didn't know why he was here. A sudden thought struck her; maybe Adel had been controlling Seifer some how, a spell or something, and maybe now he'd broken free…maybe.

"Does it really matter _why_ he's here?" she asked.

"Yes!" Zell insisted, "He could be here to kill us all!"

"Then why-" she started.

A blinding flash of light cut her off, leaving her to merely hear shouts and chilling laughter before she was drifting…drifting away.

_**SeeD Party**_

…_Mira couldn't keep her eyes off of Seifer. He was alone, all by himself in a corner of the ballroom. She sighed, leaning back against the marble column behind her, and watched all the people dancing. She was too shy to talk to anyone, and she definitely wasn't going to ask anyone to dance. Everyone else was having a good time, it seemed, everyone except her…and Seifer. She brushed a strand of black hair out of her face and looked up, her heart skipping a beat; Seifer was walking towards her._

"_Father happy you became a SeeD?" he asked in a lightly sarcastic tone._

_She ducked her head. "He's…dead too," she said softly._

_He didn't respond, but she saw the cold look in his eyes start to fade._

_She shifted uncomfortably from one foot to the other. "What about your parents?" she asked hesitantly._

"_They're both dead," he said, "The Sorceress Wars."_

_She looked down for a moment, "Oh…I'm sorry," she said softly._

_An uncomfortable moment of silence followed this until he spoke._

"_So…what Garden did you transfer from?" he asked, changing the subject._

"_Tribia," she replied, her eyes starting to brighten slightly, "It's a great place."_

"_It's up in the mountains, isn't it?" he inquired._

"_Yeah, it's beautiful, all white and snowy," she said, "It was a big change coming down here."_

"_What d'you think of the party?" Seifer asked after a pause._

_She blinked, considering that for a moment. "It's kinda dull," she said with a shrug, "Ballroom dancing is not really my thing."_

"_An' I thought I was the only one," he said. He gazed at her for a moment, "There's a _secret area_ in the Training Center, if you wanna get away from this _dull_ party."_

_Her heart skilled another beat, "That's be cool," she started, "But are we allowed to? We won't get in trou-"_

"_We're not gonna get in trouble, 'cause we're not gonna get caught," he said, cutting her off._

"_Ah, mischief," she said with a smile, "I'm game then."_

_Nobody stopped them when they left the party, and nobody bothered them when they headed for the Training Center. The Training Center-TC-was the only part of the Garden open to students at night._

"_So, why haven't I heard of this _Secret Area_ before now?" Mira asked as they walked._

_Seifer rolled his eyes, "It's called 'secret' for a reason," he said, "Anyway, you've been here, what, two days?"_

_She blushed slightly._

"_Not everyone who lives here knows about this secret area," he continued, "And only the bravest ever go there."_

"_Guess that means you've been there quite a few times," she said, moonlight from the windowpane above them reflecting in her eyes. "Why do 'only the bravest' go there?" she asked a moment later, curious._

"_Cause," he said with a smirk, "Its right by a T-Rexaur den."_

_Her heart skipped a beat; _T-Rexaur_? They were practically the meanest monster on the continent, possibly the world. No wonder only a few people went to this _secret area.

"_Still up for it?" Seifer asked._

"_Sure, beats going back to that dull party," she replied, a faint determined smile on her face._

_A moment later, the two of them were standing in front of the steel double doors that led to the Training Center. Taking a deep breath, Mira glanced over at him, and then pushed open the doors. As they walked inside, she felt her muscles tense, and she became alert, ready to react to even the slightest movement from the high brush or the trees. She didn't see anything, but that didn't mean there was nothing there. She jumped about a foot when Seifer put his hand on her shoulder._

"_Calm down," he said in a slightly sarcastic tone, looking down at her, "That's what gets people killed."_

"_Sorry," she said, face flushing from embarrassment, "It's just…I've never really seen a real T-Rexaur. I've learned about them, yeah, but that's it."_

"_Never fought a T-Rexaur...?" he paused, "Anyway, the _Secret Area_ is right through those trees."_

"_Let's get going then," She said, stepping forward._

_For a while, the two of them walked in silence, which she didn't mind because she wasn't keen on becoming a snack for a T-Rexaur or some other monster. She flinched when she suddenly spotted movement off to her left, but it was only a BiteBug. A few minutes later, they emerged from the dense clump of trees, and in front of them was the opening of a massive cave. In the rock wall besides the opening, she spotted something that definitely stuck out; an electrical control panel._

_Her eyes wandered a little; so far she hadn't seen any T-Rexaurs, and she considered them lucky for it. Seifer glanced around, than walked over to the control panel. He entered a combination, and then turned back to Mira, who saw his gaze shift to something behind her. Tensing, she slowly turned. About twenty yards behind her, quiet as a ghost, stood a towering T-Rexaur._

"_Ya up for a fight?" he called to her as the T-Rexaur swung its tail back and forth_

"_I don't have my Gunblade!" She exclaimed, spreading her hands to show that she was unarmed and glancing back at him to see that he already had his 'blade raised._

"_What happened to that hand-to-hand combat you bragged about?" he asked in a slightly amused tone._

"_Are you crazy? That won't work against this thing!" she cried, turning her attention back to the T-Rexaur._

_The massive lizard was eyeing her. Then all of a sudden the monster threw back its head, roared, and darted forward. Surprised at its speed, she barely had time to dive out of the way. The Rex skidded to a stop, kicking up clumps of dirt as it snapped at the spot where she had been only moments before. She rolled to her feet, and could only watch helplessly as Seifer went one-on-one with the T-Rexaur. _Helpless._ She hated that. Anger filled her and her eyes turned jet black._

"_Flame!" she called._

_A fireball flew from her hand, hitting the monster on its flank, but it didn't seem to do much besides infuriate it. She didn't have time to dodge its counterattack as it swung its tail around and hit her. She shouted wordlessly as she flew backward and crashed into the ground, her vision growing dark as her head connected with a rock. She heard the clash of metal, and the thunderous roar of the T-Rexaur. The beast's booming footsteps grew fainter as she forced her eyes open, struggling to keep her consciousness. She groaned and sat up, rubbing the back of her head as she looked around._

"_You alright?" Seifer asked, helping her to her feet._

"_Yeah, I think so," she replied, smiling slightly as she realized that he was actually concerned about her. "So," she added, changing the subject, "What about this _secret area_?"_

_----------_

_They both stood in the secret area now that Mira had heard so much about-recently._

"_Oh…" she breathed, gazing wide-eyed around her; she was looking down at almost half of Balamb Island._

_For a moment, neither of them said anything, each just taking in the view, though she was sure that he'd seen it plenty of times before._

"_Thanks for saving my life back there," she said shyly._

"_What'd you expect me to do? Let that thing kill you?" Seifer said._

"_Well, thanks," she said, "I…I would have done the same for you."_

_More silence, but it didn't feel so awkward this time._

"_You're the only friend I have in Balamb," she admitted, turning to face him. Her voice dropped to a whisper as she stepped closer to him before continuing, "I will always be there for you, that's a promise-as a friend."_


	12. Here With Me

**Chapter Twelve – "**_**Here With Me**_**"**

When Mira opened her eyes again she was still in the forest with the others, but there was one difference; Galabadia Garden was hovering just beside them all. She got to her feet as the others woke up as well. That dream…that memory…had shaken her a little; what had happened? Why had she dreamed of that specific moment? What was the significance of it? But she knew, that no matter how many questions she had, more likely than not, she wasn't going to have them answered. This was still Sorceress Adel's show after all, and whatever bizarre things that happened were probably her doing, and couldn't be explained. However, if they had anything to say about it, that was all about to change very soon.

"What happened?" Quistis asked, sitting up.

"Doesn't matter, Galabadia Garden is right there, we may never get a better chance to finally defeat Adel," Mira interrupted, turning to the others.

They fell silent, and though still puzzled, they had no choice but to agree with her.

"Zell, Quistis, Selphie; stay here and help the civilians and any survivors. Cale, Rinoa, Squall; with me," she said, "We have to end this now."

--------

They were inside Galabadia Garden, and it would hopefully be the last time they fought Adel, but they would have to find her first. It wasn't that hard, considering that they all felt drawn to a certain place in the Garden, though Mira was drawn to a different part of the Garden as well, more strongly. She told the others to continue on, that she would catch up with them; she just wanted to see what was down this eerie hallway. After a moment, she was walking down the half lit hall alone, though it was creepy, like she wasn't _really_ alone, or wasn't supposed to be there.

A chill ran up her spine and she tightened her grip on her Gunblade. There was a door at the end of the hall, and she pushed it open, taking a fighter's stance as she did so. The room was dark, lit only by flickering candles, and cold air rushed out of the room, causing her to shiver. Suddenly, some unseen force pushed her into the room and slammed the door behind her. Startled, she stumbled and whirled, but it was too late. She blinked, and a little more light filled the room as she turned again, trying to find the source, but instead, she found…

"Seifer," she whispered.

"We meet again," he said, "But this time only one of us is walking away."

There was an ache deep in her chest as Mira lowered her Gunblade and said, "I don't want to fight you Seifer, I never did."

"You have to," he said, "You're a SeeD; it's in your nature to fight. It's what you are."

"No!" She exclaimed, on the verge of tears and yet furious at the same time.

She leapt forward and swung her Gunblade around in an arc that Seifer easily blocked, resulting in a clash of metal that echoed through the room. She didn't want to fight him, but he gave her no choice, and she couldn't back out now…. She struck out again, only for him to dodge and swing a return blow which she in turn blocked and stepped back out of reach.

"Seifer," she said, sidestepping another blow, "We shouldn't be fighting."

"Really?" he said in a mocking tone.

She dodged yet another blow, struck out once, and backed away again. She lowered her Gunblade to her side, and faced him.

"Why do we fight?" she said sadly, "Fighting gets us no where, and we only hurt each other." She closed her eyes to fight back tears.

"Do you remember your promise?" Seifer asked.

She opened her eyes in surprise, "Of course," she whispered.

"There's only one way you can help me now, Mira," he said.

"Seifer…" she said softly, having the dreading feeling she knew what he was going to say next.

"Adel's controlin' me, you know what you have to do; you have to kill me," he said.

"No!" she shouted.

"You have to. I'll kill you if you don't…"

"I don't care if Adel is controlling you! I'd die myself before I'd…before I'd kill you!" her voice cracked.

"It's the only way," he said quietly, regret in his blue eyes.

She swallowed hard, shaking her head slowly. This was the real Seifer, the Seifer she'd fallen in love with so long ago. There was no way she would kill him.

He knew this though, and had his own idea to _force_ her to kill him. He lunged at her, his Hyperion raised, and without thinking, or maybe just meaning to disarm him, she tensed and swung her own Gunblade. Her attack caught him hard across the chest, the blade biting deep, and a second later her eyes widened as she realized what she'd done-what he'd made her do. Her bloody Gunblade slipped from her hands and landed with a clatter on the polished floor.

"NO!" Mira screamed as he fell. She went to him, dropping to her knees beside him, and held him in her arms. "Oh god, Seifer," she said, tears in her eyes, "Why-" God, he was bleeding bad- "Why?"

"You can't die, you can't!" she shouted, angry at him and herself. She was actually crying now, trying to press her hands over the wound though it seemed to do no good.

Neither of them noticed Cale standing in the doorway.

"We could've gotten through this, defeated Adel together!" she said, trying to stop the bleeding of his wound.

"Tell me you'll never give up," he said softly, raising a gloved hand briefly to her face, "You can take on the world and win…if you only believe that you can."

"No…you can't die!" she repeated, sobbing, "I-I need you…I love you, Seifer."

He smiled faintly, a sad smile, "I've…always loved you," he whispered, and she cried harder then before.

---------------------

**One month after the defeat of Sorceress Adel**

Mira walked slowly through the cemetery, looking around, and smiled sadly; everything was so beautiful here in the summer. Wildflowers dotted the meadow beyond the reaches of the gravestones, and birds sang, yet none of this cheerfulness brightened her mood, not even close. She wasn't here for scenery, not today, not ever.

She continued around a vine-covered trellis, the sleeveless white dress she wore catching lightly on the thorns. There he was, at the top of the hill, standing next to the grave. Her heart leapt into her throat and her eyes widened; he was alive! But the next moment, he was gone, and she closed her eyes, knowing that he hadn't really been there, that her mind had been playing tricks on her, showing her what she had wanted desperately to see. She opened her eyes and slowly walked up the hill, carefully holding the rose in her hands.

Mira knelt beside the gravestone, blinking back tears that burned her eyes and threatened to fall. She laid the rose on the grave-a white rose, because it was a symbol of good, and friendship...and because the Sorceress's Knight always wore white-brushing her fingers lightly against the words carved into the stone, her tears blurring her vision even more now, and whispered his name;

"_Seifer_."

For a long while, she just sat there, sometimes crying, sometimes not. She kept telling herself that she hadn't meant to kill him, that it wasn't her fault; she'd meant to knock his blade away.

The sun began to set as the breeze blew flower petals through the air up from the meadow. She watched the swirling petals; the ache in her chest lessened slightly with this distraction, and gently caught one of the petals in her hand. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw that it was a red rose petal, because there weren't any rose bushes near the cemetery, to her knowledge at least.

Looking up, she saw a figure standing near the bottom of the hill, and for one brief minute, like before, she thought it was Seifer...until she realized that it was only Cale. She stood, brushing grass and a bit of dirt from her dress before slowly making her way down the hill to where he stood, the rose petal still in one fist.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly.

"Yeah," she replied after a minute.

The two of them began to walk through the cemetery, heading for the entrance, and he slid his hand around hers. After a while, she remembered that she still held the rose petal, and looked down at it, surprised to find that she was no longer holding a petal, but a silver ring. She stopped and turned to face in the direction of Seifer's grave, which was splashed in golden light from the setting sun. She smiled faintly though somewhat confused, fighting back another wave of tears. How had the petal transformed…? Did she somehow…? Or maybe it had been…. No, it couldn't have been him; it had to have been her magic somehow.

"Is something wrong?" Cale asked.

She turned back to him, gripping the ring tightly, "No, everything's fine," she said, but was sure he saw the tears in her eyes.

She continued walking, neither of them saying a word as they reached the entrance to the cemetery. The fading sunlight made the whole landscape look golden, and as a flock of birds flew by overhead as she sighed softly; she wasn't alone, and it wasn't just because Cale was walking besides her, it was something else as well.

Slowly, Mira slid the ring onto her finger, smiling softly to herself as she brushed away a stray tear. No, she wasn't alone; Seifer would never be truly gone, he would remain always and forever in her heart.


	13. Illusionary

**A/N: **Aaaaand it's done. Finally. I don't really like _Follow the Wind_ that much myself, just because it seems childish to how I write now. But anyway, enough of me critizing myself; here's the epilogue, and I'll be getting the sequel up soon.

**Epilogue – "**_**Illusionary**_**"**

The sun was setting and it would be night soon, but for now, everything looked golden. Mira stood in the meadow, petals from the wild flowers swirling through the air, like the last time she'd been here with Cale. Everything was…so beautiful, and she wished this moment could last forever, the warm sun casting its golden light across the land. She felt so safe in his arms, all worries were forgotten. Everything was…perfect.

"You'll never leave me, will you?" she asked.

"I'll always be with you, I promise," Seifer replied.

She couldn't even think about losing him; it was too painful. The thought brought tears to her eyes and she didn't know she was crying until Seifer spoke again.

"What's wrong?"

Mira turned to face him and put her arms around him. He held her tight as she cried silently.

"I'm sorry, I'm being silly," she said finally, "I just…couldn't stand it if I lost you."

"Never apologize for your feelings," he said, "And you don't have to worry; I'm not goin' anywhere."

She laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes, wishing this moment _could_ last forever, and yet…she knew it wasn't even really happening _now_, so how could it last forever? She knew she had to face reality…but she didn't want to. Facing reality would mean accepting the fact that Seifer was…gone, but how long could she keep lying to herself? How long could she continue to put herself through the pain of these lucid daydreams? She sighed softly, tears in her eyes.

"Seifer," she whispered, pulling away, "How can you say you'll never leave me, when you're already gone?"

She blinked and she was once more alone. She sighed again, sitting down next to the gravestone and staring out at the meadow. _Seifer was gone_. She was going to have to accept that, there was no way to bring him back. But of course he would never _really_ be gone; she would always remember him. Would always remember the good times…and the bad times.

She rested her hand on the Gunblade next to her. It had been Seifer's, but she kept it now. She watched as the sun sank down below the horizon and night fell upon her like a dark veil. It was late, and she knew she should go, but she didn't want to. The stars showed themselves as a cool breeze swept through the meadow, making her shiver slightly. She curled up next to the gravestone, one hand on the Hyperion, and fell asleep, dreaming only of Seifer…

_**Fin**_


End file.
